Apparatus for making metal articles.



H. TOLPUTT.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING METAL ARTICLES.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 10. I913.

Patented Oct. 24, 1916.

M amt/WNW Al I.

APPARATUS FOR MAKING METAL ARTICLES.

Original application filed November 18, 1912, Serial No. 732,081.

10, 1913. Serial No. 753,368.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HERBERT ToLrU'rT, tool engineer, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at New London Works, Bridge street, Sheffield, England, have 1nvented a new or Improved Apparatus for Making Metal Articles, of which the following is a specification.

This application is a division of an application, Serial No. 732081, filed by me November 18, 1912, for new or improved method and means for forming metal blanks, or the like for cutlery articles, tools, or other instruments.

According to the present invention I form metal blanks or the like for cutlery articles, tools and other instruments or purposes direct from a sheet or strip of metal such as steel by the following method and means I employ two dies one or both of which is adapted to approach toward and recede from the other in any suitable manner (advantageously in a straight line) and operated by any suitable means; and the contour of said dies corresponds with the contour of the finished article (blank) as for example in the case of a blade for pocket knives each die would have a contour corresponding to the contour of the finished blade and tang; and each such die is recessed or sunk or so formed on the operative surface thereof as to correspond with the shape of the side face of the blade and tang, and each such recess or sink of a suitable depth for example equal to say half the thickness of the blade or other article so that when the two dies are brought together or nearly together (2'. e. in the operative position) the cavity or mold formed between same by said respective recesses thus corresponds with the shape in all respects of the knife blade or other articles to be made. Or the recessed or sunk portions of said dies may together form a space either rather more or rather less than the thickness of the knife blade or other article to be formed. One of these tools or dies is provided thereon with a closely fitting slidable sleeve or cutter member which latter may be stationary or may be adapted to be reciprocated upon or independently of the die which same surrounds or (and) said die may be adapted to be reciprocated independently of said sleeve or cutter i. 6. this die (or the two dies when locked together) may be arranged to be Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 2-41, 1916.

Divided and this application filed March moved through said sleeve or cutter. Thus when the metal sheet or strip from which the blank is to be formed is placed between said pair of dies and the latter are forcibly caused to approach each other thereby the blank is shaped or formed, and thereafterwhile said dies are held locked together with 1 the shaped blank held rigidly between same-the said sleeve or cutter is caused or allowed to operate so as to shear or cut off the shaped blank all around exactly to the contour of the article to be formed; and the blank or article thus formed is then removed from the dies.

I will now proceed to further describe my present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure 1 shows the metal strip Z before being operated on. Fig. 2 shows the impression and tapering shape a of the knife blade which is given to the strip Z by the operation of the dies K and K Fig. 3 shows the blade and tang complete as cut out by the second operation; and Fig. 4 shows the metal strip Z from which said knife blade and tang has been cut out. Fig. 5 is a local view, partly in section, showing the dies and cutters adapted to shape and cut out the complete blade and tang as follows:

K is the top die and K the lower die or squeezing jaw so recessed and shaped on their proximate faces as to impart the shape or impression of the knife blade 2 and the nail mark 2 (and center punch or center hole 2 in readiness for the tang) when forced together upon the metal strip Z placed between same, see Fig. 5; and upon completion of the squeezing action by the dies K K these two dies (while still held firmly pressed against the metal strip Z between them) are then together forced downward through the cutter or hollow punch M fixed in the frame N until the strip Z has been sheared off all around the knife blade 2 and tang, thus leaving the latter cut out complete (as shown in Fig. 3) while still held in the dies K K and thus removing same from the metal strip Z (see Fig. 4) and the dies can then be restored to their normal position and separated and the comand K and thesleeve M. In this instance the lower die K is shown fixedly supported on the framework of the apparatus, while the upper die K is movable through the eccentrics 2 on the power shaft 3. The power shaft 3 is provided with a bevel. gear 4: meshing with a similar gear 5 on the upper end of a shaft 6 mounted in brackets 7 on the frame. The lower end of the shaft 6 likewise carries a bevel gear 8 in mesh with a bevel gear 9 on a shaft 10 journaled in the frame below the lower die K Eccentrics 11 are' carried on the shaft 10 and the straps 12 thereof connect with the sleeve supporting structure wherebythe same is operated to reciprocate the sleeve.

It will thus be seen that by the aforesaid means according to the present invention the metal blank is not only formed into the desired contour or outline of the article to be made but also the desired general form or shape (curvature or angle of the tapering sidesor faces) is in the same operation imparted to said article as for example in the case of a knife blade blank not only is the outline given to the blade part and tang but the desired tapering form or angle of the sides or varying thickness of the metal of the blade part are all imparted in one operation, and thereafter in the next operation the shaped blank is cut out by means of the shearing cutter M.

The blank thus formed is now all ready for grinding or (and) glazing or (and) polishing but 'canwith great economy be glazed and polished only thereby doing without any process of grinding.

hat I claim is 1- 1.. Apparatus for manufacturing metal blanks for cutlery articles, comprising the combination with a pair of shaping dies one of which is adapted to be forced toward and away from the other, of a shearing cutter surrounding and closely fitting one of said pair of dies and adapted to also fit over the other of said pair of dies, to thereby cut out and entirely remove the shaped blank from the sheet or strip while the blank is held locked between the said dies all substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.

2. Apparatus for manufacturing metal blanks for cutlery articles, comprising the combination with a pair of shaping dies one of which is adapted to be forced toward and away from the other in a straight line, of a shearing cutter surrounding and closely fitting one of said pair of dies, to thereby cut out and entirely remove the shaped blank from the sheet or strip while the blank is held locked between the said dies all substantially as and for the purposes hereinbefore described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two witnesses.

HERBERT TOLPUTT.

Witnesses A. S. HAsELnEN, EDWIN GANDOR.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of latents. Washington, D. G. 

